Shambar

Name: Shambar
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 90 min
Total time: 110 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Peruvian
Ingredients: 1 lb pork shoulder, cubed; 1 smoked ham hock; 1/2 cup wheat berries, soaked; 1/2 cup dried chickpeas, soaked; 1/2 cup dried fava beans, soaked; 1 red onion, diced; 4 garlic cloves, minced; 2 tbsp aji amarillo paste; 8 cups pork broth; 1/4 cup fresh spearmint, chopped

A traditional northern Peruvian soup combining seasoned pork, tender wheat berries, and mixed legumes simmered with yellow chili and fresh spearmint.

110 minMediumServes 6520 cal/serving

PeruvianSoupStovetopHigh ProteinHigh FiberDairy-FreeNut-FreeEgg-FreeSoy-FreeShellfish-FreeSesame-FreeAlcohol-FreeNightshade-FreeCorn-Free

Ingredients

1 lb pork shoulder, cubed
1 smoked ham hock
1/2 cup wheat berries, soaked
1/2 cup dried chickpeas, soaked
1/2 cup dried fava beans, soaked
1 red onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp aji amarillo paste
8 cups pork broth
1/4 cup fresh spearmint, chopped

Instructions

1

Heat a large pot over medium heat and brown 1 lb cubed pork shoulder and 1 smoked ham hock until golden.
2

Remove meat, then add 1 diced red onion and 4 minced garlic cloves to the pot, sautéing until soft.
3

Stir in 2 tbsp aji amarillo paste and cook for 2 minutes until fragrant.
4

Return meat to the pot, pour in 8 cups pork broth, and add 1/2 cup soaked wheat berries, 1/2 cup soaked dried chickpeas, and 1/2 cup soaked dried fava beans.
5

Bring soup to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer covered for 75 minutes until grains and beans are tender and pork reaches an internal temperature of at least 145°F.
6

Stir in 1/4 cup chopped fresh spearmint just before serving.

Questions

Can I make Shambar gluten-free?

Yes. The gluten in this entry is 1/2 cup wheat berries, soaked. Swap the grain for cooked rice or quinoa (the chew will differ). Everything else proceeds as written.

How long does Shambar keep?

Refrigerate it up to four days, or freeze it in portions for up to three months. Reheat gently on the stovetop with a splash of water or stock to loosen it.

Can I halve or double Shambar?

Yes. As written it serves 6. Every ingredient in this entry carries precomputed half and double quantities, and the app's batch dial rewrites them inside each step. When doubling on the stovetop, use your widest pan or work in two batches so the food sears instead of steaming.

Serve it with

Camote Fries with Aji Dipping Sauce side
Ensalada Criolla salad
Creamed Spinach side

Cook this free in the app

Textual Chef is a plain-text cooking reference of 3,876 recipes, free to read and cook from, with no account and no paywall. In the app, this entry scales itself: half, standard, or double batch, every quantity recomputed inside the step that uses it. No ads, no life stories, no photos of somebody else's dinner.

The entries are curated and public-domain sourced, written to a fixed template and checked against it: tested quantities, one closed vocabulary of methods, and precomputed half and double batches on every line. Nothing here is a scraped blog post.

Cook this free in the appNo download needed. It opens in your browser, instantly. The kitchen tools (planner, shopping list, pantry, import) are $5.33 a month billed annually, and the first 30 days are free.